The two factions of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) are gearing up for their first electoral battle, upcoming bypolls at two West Bengal assembly seats amid uncertainty over who the Election Commission of India (ECI) will grant the right to the party’s poll symbol.
EC announced on Monday that bypolls to Murshidabad district’s Rejinargar and East Midnapore’s Nandigram will be held on October 6 and the results would be announced on October 9. The nominations can be filed between September 9 and 16.
Former state minister Firhad Hakim, once counted among TMC founder Mamata Banerjee’s closest aides and now in the Ritabrata Banerjee-led rival group calling itself the “real TMC,” said his “party” will contest both seats.
“We are the TMC. We will win both seats,” Hakim said.
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Akhruzzaman, the chief whip of the same faction in the state assembly said, “Our working committee is scheduled to meet on Thursday to decide both candidates.”
{{/usCountry}}Akhruzzaman, the chief whip of the same faction in the state assembly said, “Our working committee is scheduled to meet on Thursday to decide both candidates.”
{{/usCountry}}Mamata Banerjee loyalists did not comment on candidate selection till Tuesday afternoon, but veteran MLA Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay claimed the Bharatiya Janata Party might use its control over the administration to secure the seats.
“BJP will use the police to control the elections. Our supporters will be beaten up by BJP workers,” Chattopadhyay said.
Speaking anonymously, a TMC leader from the Mamata Banerjee faction said fielding a formidable candidate from Nandigram might pose a challenge.
“Sheikh Sufiyan was Banerjee’s election agent at Nandigram in 2021 when she was defeated by Adhikari for the first time and had to contest a bypoll at Bhabanipur to continue as chief minister. Sufiyan is a popular TMC face but he has refused to contest. So has Pabitra Kar, who lost to Adhikari in April,” this person added.
The election in both constitutes is expected to be polarising.
Humayun Kabir was the TMC’s Bharatpur legislator in Murshidabad district before being suspended in 2025.
“There are only 27-30 % Hindu voters in Rejinagar. The rest are all Muslims. If the other parties reach out to the Hindus, I will obviously seek support from the Muslims,” Kabir said.
The Hindu-Muslim ratio in Nandigram is almost the opposite. “People of Nandigram are eager to ensure our victory by a larger margin than Falta. I, too, am a voter in Nandigram,” CM Suvendu Adhikari said on Monday after the bypolls were announced.
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The BJP won the Falta seat by 109,021 votes . The TMC, which won Falta thrice since 2011, finished fourth in the race.
Political analysts see the bypolls as a contest that could determine the real TMC.
“The symbol is crucial. At the same time, it will be interesting to see if the Left or the Congress can do well, as was noticed in Falta. The results will affect the coming municipal polls in Kolkata and the districts,” political columnist Suvashis Maitra said.